CM wants Parade Grounds
KCR asks PM to give Secunderabad land for Secretariat
Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allot the Secunderabad Parade Grounds to the TS government to build the Secretariat complex.
Earlier, Mr Rao had met the then defence minister Manohar Parrikar with a request to allot Bison Polo Ground, which is adjacent to the Parade Grounds, for the same purpose. That request was not accepted.
However, during Monday’s meeting with the PM, Mr Rao sought the Parade Grounds saying that the state government will allot the same extent of land to the defence ministry at some other place.
Mr Rao also put forth a series of requests to the Prime Minister, stating that all the commitments and promises made in the AP Reorganisation Act should be implemented. These include the increase in the number of Assembly seats and bifurcation of the Hyderabad High Court.
Mr Rao’s one-on-one meeting with the Prime Minister lasted for over an hour. He later met law and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad. Mr Rao requested the PM to exempt agriculture-related and agriculture-dependent trades from Income Tax as is done with the agriculture sector.
He felt that by giving IT exemption to trades and professions connected to the agriculture sector, people eking out a livelihood from these trades will benefit the most.
Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allot the Secunderabad Parade Grounds to the TS government to build the Secretariat complex.
Mr Rao requested the PM to exempt farm-related and agriculture dependant trades from Income Tax.
Mr Rao wanted an Act be passed in this regard. “The entire income generated through agriculture is exempted from IT now. There are several other professions; trades that solely depend on the agriculture sector in the hinterlands. Several backward communities survive through these professions. Sheep-rearers, fishermen, weavers, washermen, hairdressers etc. virtually eke out a living from their hereditary professions. They are doing highly laborious work and some of them are also in artistic work. Taxing their income from such professions is not justified,” Mr Rao explained.
He also briefed the PM in detail the recent passage of increased reservation for STs and Backward Muslims by the TS Legislature. Mr Rao sought early clearance from Centre to keep the quota under Schedule 9 of the Constitution.
He also requested the PM to give more weightage to states to decide the quantum of reservations to various communities.
The CM also requested the PM to take measures to increase the number of Legislative Assembly constituencies in TS, based on the AP Reorganisation Act. He also wanted the bifurcation of the High Court to be expedited, release of `1,400 crore of CAMPA funds from the Centre, recognition of Kaleswaram project as a National Project and release of funds accordingly.
Meanwhile, Mr Rao, who met Union Law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, requested him to get approval for the new Land Acquisition Act passed by the TS Assembly. The CM said the oustees will get major benefits quickly under the new Act and construction of projects will also be expedited.
To this, Mr Prasad said that his ministry has already accorded approval.